


Late Nights

by sanstexte (orphan_account)



Category: Marvel 616
Genre: Drabble, Family, Fluff, Gen, Humor, dark reign, siblingness
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2009-06-05
Updated: 2009-11-03
Packaged: 2017-10-02 22:29:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 883
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11379
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/sanstexte
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Conversations between Marvel's first children as they camp out on the Baxter Building main floor. Set before the end of Dark Reign: Fantastic Four #3.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Late Nights And Killer Robots

The main floor of the Baxter Building was eerily quiet. Both children had long since curled themselves up in the emergency sleeping bags kept in the conveniently located storage closet by the public washrooms.

"You ever wonder if dad's robots could pull a Terminator?" Franklin asked a loud, breaking the silence.

Valeria looked at him and shrugged. "I don't think Dad's bothered to make a self aware robot. 'sides it'll be uncle Tony who does, if anyone. Even then, I bet we've got a few years before anyone even attempts to make a sentiment AI system."

Franklin looked up at her, surprised that she thought about this sort of thing too. Apparently more than he ever had. "I guess..."

"Think about it Franklin, Dad doesn't just focus on one thing. He'd never settle down and create something like Skynet. Uncle Tony's a possibility, but only because technology that learns and adapts to things is best suited for his Iron Man suits." Val paused for a moment to let her brother digest what she just said. Sure she phrased it in layman's terms, but that didn't necessarily mean Franklin understood. He'd been a little slow lately... "Or the government's working on it."

"Reassuring Val."

"Why? You think you're gonna be John Connor?" she teased.

"Heeeey" he yelled "I'm not the one who actually made calculations!"

"Like you haven't thought about everything crazy that's a possibility. Remember the elder god?"

"Yeah, I saved your butt."

She glared at him, before sighing playfully "Fine. You're John Connor. What does that make me?"

"Terminator bait?"

Val glared at him before throwing her pillow. "You suck, Franklin."


	2. Late Nights and The Importance of Hope

Franklin Richards hardly has the chance to play the role of big brother lately. Ever since his little sister came out of The intellectual closet, she took to big brothering him.

It wasn't just emasculating (maybe it was, he didn't know what that meant) but embarrassing. He could be smart too, if he wanted. Unlike some people he just didn't feel like showing off.

So it came as a surprise when he was awoken by Val. She was quieter than usual, her voice sounded worried, instead of its usual annoyed. The confidence that came from her know it all attitude was decidedly missing. It was the shock of hearing such vulnerability from someone who went to every effort to avoid it that woke him up. Just because he couldn't remember pi to the 50th decimal, or even knew what pi was, it didn't mean he didn't know other things. He had fine tuned his senses when it came to emotions, and had become a pro at noticing when things were off.

And something was definitely off.

"Yeah, awake." he mumbles wondering if she'll believe him.

"You sure"

He sits up and rubs his eyes, "See, awake"

"Ok."

"What's wrong?" He as may get to the bottom of the problem if he ever wants to sleep again.

"Nothing." Valeria mumbles under her breath, laying back down and closing her eyes.

Franklin taking her cue, does the same, only to be interrupted as soon as his lids hit his cheeks.

"What if they don't come home." A meek voice asks in the dark.

Suddenly it all made sense.

That was what was off. She was scared. He'd faced this question time and time before. But Val hadn't. Or at least she hadn't before she was smart enough to realize what their parents did. Sure now that he was older, it didn't make things less scary, but he'd been through it enough to know that hope was enough to get you through.

"They will." he smiles, reaching his hand over towards hers and grabbing it.

"What if whatever that energy was was one of dads machine's, blown up, and it sent them across millions of dimensions with no way home? What if the building was attacked by Doom, and as a last minute save Dad activated something that that.." she trails off, no doubt because she doesn't want to consider each worsening option.

"Trust me, sis" Franklin says, squeezing her hand "They always find their way home. You just need to believe it."


	3. Late Nights and The Quantum Theory of Captain Kirk

"I'm not Spock." Valeria says into the open air.

"You totally are." Her brother replies, satisfied he hit a nerve back when he had said it.

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Yep. See look, your ears are even pointy!" he smiles, reaching his arm over to her ears.

Val quickly smacks her brother's hand away from her head. "YOU DONT GET TO BE KIRK IF I'M SPOCK"

"Fiiiiine" the boy agrees reluctantly, He was beat, and he knew it. "Who are you, then?"

"Well," she starts, pointing at her first finger "Dad's Spock, Mom's Nyota.."

"Who?"

"Uhura, geez, weren't you paying attention at ALL in the movie?"

The boy glares at her, not wanting to cause another argument.

"So anyways," she continues "Uncle Johnny is Kirk, Uncle Ben is McCoy, I'm Chekov, and you can be Nero."

Realizing that the she lied, the boy gets up out of his sleeping bag, and stands right over her. "You said I got to be Kirk!"

"Did I?" she grins.

"If I stopped calling you Spock, you'd let me be Kirk!"

"Payback."

"What?"

"Payback" she replies coolly, "for saying I was Terminator bait."


End file.
